* Dollar falls to 15-year low against the yen
* Asian stocks, metals rally as cheap money trade continues
* Weak U.S. jobs data adds fuel to Fed easing speculation
* IMF, G7 offers no fix for currency market tensions
* Corn jumps most since 1972 on U.S. supply worries
By Vikram S.Subhedar
HONG KONG, Oct 11 (Reuters) - The dollar slid to a 15-year
low against the yen and Asian stocks rose on Monday as U.S.
jobs data boosted the chances of easier U.S. monetary policy
and IMF and G7 meetings produced little to ease global currency
tensions.
Finance leaders meeting over the weekend in Washington
produced no quick fix for global economic imbalances,
suggesting the cheap money trade of selling dollars to buy
emerging market assets and commodities looks set to continue
for now.
That was further spurred by weaker-than-expected jobs data
in the United States on Friday that raised the chances the
Federal Reserve would inject fresh funds into the economy as
soon as its Nov. 2-3 meeting. []
"We've had low interest rates in the most developed
economies for some time and we have robust growth and the need
to tighten policy elsewhere. That suggests the flows going into
the emerging world are going to continue," said Alan Ruskin,
global head of FX Strategy at Deutsche Bank.
The dollar weakened broadly against a basket of currencies
<.DXY> and against the yen fell as far as 81.37 yen <JPY=>, its
lowest level in 15 years. It later recovered to 81.99. []
Although Japan is closed for a national holiday on Monday,
the dollar's slide put markets on alert for potential
intervention by the Bank of Japan, especially since the G7 and
the IMF didn't produce any overt criticism of Tokyo's yen
selling. []
The MSCI Asia ex-Japan stock index <.MIAPJ0000PUS> rose 0.7
percent on expectations that a flood of investment funds into
emerging markets would continue.
Hong Kong shares <> hit a 2-year peak, breaking out of
a trading range that has held since November 2009 and leading a
broad rally in Asian markets.
"Investors almost seem to be welcoming weak U.S. jobs data,
taking it as a sign the U.S. Fed will offer additional economic
support measures," said Kwak Joong-bo, a market analyst at
Samsung Securities in Seoul.
CORN RISES MOST SINCE 1972
The Australian dollar <AUD=D4> looked set to test a 28-year
high of $0.9918 against the U.S. dollar, while shares <>
rose to five-month highs.
Australia is emerging as a clear winner in the investment
shift to higher yields and commodities.
Shanghai zinc futures <SZNc3> rallied almost 5 percent on
Monday to their highest level since April, chasing gains in
London, while copper <SCFc3> rose to six-month high.
[]
Grain prices surged. Chicago corn jumped 8.5 percent for
its biggest gain since 1972, boosted by a U.S. government
forecast that supplies in the world's top exporter would shrink
to their lowest in 14 years. []
Precious metals extended their gains with spot silver
<XAG=> hitting a 30-year high and gold <XAU=> rising 0.5
percent to edge back towards a record high reached on Thursday
of $1,364.60 an ounce.
Emerging powers won a battle on Saturday for heightened IMF
scrutiny of rich countries' economic policies as world
financial leaders sought to defuse mounting tensions over
currencies. [] []
Investors will get earnings reports this week from
bellwether U.S. corporations including Google <GOOG.O>, GE
<GE.N> and JPMorgan Chase & Co <JPM.N>, although the short-term
direction of stocks is likely to be dominated by the
possibility of more cheap money flowing in the from the Fed.
(Additional reporting by Koh Gui Qing in SYDNEY and Jungyoun
Park in SEOUL)
